Start here if you're new
what it is
Hexcel makes lightweight materials for planes and defense gear, and 61% of sales come from commercial aerospace.
how it gets paid
Last year Hexcel made $1.9B in revenue.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 0.5% last year. Hexcel’s largest program is the airbus a350, and this plane was certainly part of the problem, as supply-chain woes led to channel destocking.
what just happened
Hexcel's latest quarter put $0.60 EPS above the $0.53 estimate.
At a glance
B+ balance sheet — decent shape, but not bulletproof
25/100 earnings predictability — expect surprises
49.3x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
0.8% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
13.0% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 55/100 — below average
What they do
Hexcel makes lightweight materials for planes and defense gear, and 61% of sales come from commercial aerospace.
Hexcel gets 61% of sales from commercial aerospace, so your airline cycle becomes its paycheck. Its 13.0% return on capital (profit from money put in) means every $100 invested has produced about $13 of profit. That is a better return than its 0.8% dividend yield, which pays 80 cents on $100.
How they make money
$1.9B
annual revenue · revenue declined -0.5% last year
total revenue
$1.9B
0.5%
The products that matter
certified aerospace composites
Advanced Composites
$1.9B revenue · 100% of sales
it's the entire business. That means every revenue dollar, all $1.9B of it, depends on aerospace demand and production timing holding up.
100% of revenue
Key numbers
$89.79
share price
That is your current bill at $89.79. VL's $82 target sits below it, so the market already paid ahead.
49.3x
trailing p/e
You are paying 49.3 years of current earnings for one year of profit. That is rich next to a 9.1% operating margin.
9.1%
operating margin
For every $100 of sales, about $9 stayed after operating costs. That is solid beside 49.3x earnings.
$1.9B
annual sales
That is $1.9B of annual sales. A 5% drop would trim about $95M from revenue.
Financial health
B+
strength
- balance sheet grade B+ — solid but not elite
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 60 / 100
- long-term debt $993M (13% of capital)
- net profit margin 11.3% — keeps 11 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 16% — $0.16 profit for every $1 investors have put in
B+ — functional but not a standout on the balance sheet.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in HXL 3 years ago → it's now worth $13,070.
The index would have given you $13,880.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
Hexcel's latest quarter put $0.60 EPS above the $0.53 estimate.
Revenue was $1.4B, up 207% Vs. last year, and gross margin was 22.4%. That pair says the quarter was better than the $0.53 estimate.
$1.4B
revenue
$0.60
eps
22.4%
gross margin
EPS beat
The $0.60 print beat the $0.53 estimate by 13.21%, which was the cleanest proof the quarter landed better than expected.
-
hexcel’s leadership saw positive trends starting to develop in the latter stages of 2025.
-
for the fourth quarter, sales beat expectations by about $15 million and share earnings came in almost a dime above the consensus.
-
still, the overall campaign was a challenging one, filled with commercial aerospace (61% of the 2025 top line) original equipment manufacturer customers delaying production ramp ups.hexcel’s largest program is the airbus a350, and this plane was certainly part of the problem, as supply-chain woes led to channel destocking.
-
however, global readings to close the year began to perk up.commercial aircraft build rates are poised to speed up this year, to go along with increased spending on the defense and space spending front.
-
for these reasons, hxl shares have rallied 15% since our late november review.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
hexcel is not balancing several unrelated businesses. It is one aerospace materials company with one big dependency: aircraft programs need to ramp on time.
med
commercial aerospace production delays
commercial aerospace was 61% of 2025 revenue. When aircraft manufacturers push out ramp schedules, hexcel does not have many other places to hide.
that exposure covers roughly $1.16B of the $1.9B top line.
med
program concentration and destocking
the airbus a350 was called out as hexcel's largest program, and supply-chain issues there led to channel destocking. When a major platform slows, the pain shows up quickly.
this is what a one-line business looks like in practice.
med
valuation outrunning fundamentals
the stock trades at 49.3x trailing earnings after revenue slipped 0.5% last year and the shares rallied 15% since late november. That is a demanding setup.
with a working midpoint of $100 and visible downside view at $82 on this page, you are not buying obvious cheapness.
if commercial aerospace stays slow, hexcel gets hit twice: volume stays under pressure and a premium multiple has less to stand on.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
earnings
next earnings report
you want to see whether the stronger tone from late 2025 turns into actual revenue growth, not just cleaner commentary.
metric
fy2026 eps estimate
the current number is $2.25. If that starts moving down, the forward multiple stops looking like a bridge and starts looking like the problem.
risk
commercial aerospace ramp timing
61% of revenue sits here. Airbus and other OEM production timing matters more than almost anything else on this page.
trend
institutional flow
institutions have been net sellers for 3 straight quarters. If that reverses, the market may be starting to trust the rebound story again.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
average
momentum score 3 — in human-speak, analysts see a normal setup here, not a stock breaking away from the pack.
risk profile
average
stability score 3 — typical risk profile. not a bunker stock, not a chaos stock.
chart momentum
average
technical score 3 — the chart is acting like a regular mid-cap, not sending a loud signal either way.
earnings predictability
25 / 100
earnings predictability is low. Translation: this business is tied to program timing, so quarterly numbers can wobble.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutions have been net selling for 3 consecutive quarters — 175 buyers vs. 205 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 88.8M shares. net selling for 3 quarters.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$53
$111
$90
current price
$82
target midpoint · 9% from current · 3-5yr high: $150 (+65% · 14% ann'l return)
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